1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates to fire detection and suppression in containers, generally relating to vehicles equipped with tanks or pressure vessels for transporting liquid and gaseous substances.
2. Description of the Related Art
The risk of fire and explosion in vessels used for storing and transporting flammable bulk liquid or gaseous cargo continues to be of concern due to the large, mobile concentration of energy aboard. For example a truck, railcar or network of railcars loaded with such cargo, is a hazard to public safety if a catastrophic failure were to occur.
Failures include a wide variety of possibilities arising from accidents, equipment malfunction, or combat situations. In the case of accidents, the modes of failure include, for example, collisions with other vehicles or objects that sufficiently damage the storage vessel which holds the liquid or gas, and vehicle rollovers in which the storage vessel strikes the ground or some object near the ground, in such a way to trigger ignition. Equipment malfunction can occur in a variety of ways including failures and leaks from valves, couplings, and structural failures in storage vessels themselves. Furthermore, some vehicles such as those involved in military operations, may be subject to threats such as from enemy fire, and proximity to ordnance, munitions, and other hazards. For these reasons it is important to be able to detect when such vessels are at risk of fire or explosion, and to be able to respond when threats of sufficient severity are detected.
Fire detection and suppression systems that have been used in stationary and mobile applications include the use of fire extinguishing foam with specific applications and the use of automatic cut offs to the vehicle electrical power when catastrophic failures occur.